An Underworld Vow
by DillyTheWombat
Summary: People often said that Will Solace is one lucky man to be engaged to the beautiful yet dangerous, and mysterious Heiress of Ramírez-Arellano. But Will often questioned that claim, especially when he found himself engaged not to the Lady, but to a Corpse obsessed with marriage instead. "Oh yes, one lucky man indeed!" Solangelo, AU. Loosely based on Tim Burton's Corpse Bride.
1. A Monologue of an Engaged Youth

**0: A Monologue of an Engaged Youth**

* * *

Quite frankly, Will Solace is not ready for a vow of marriage.

Or, any type of vow and promises really. Will, as much as he hate to admit it, is a careless guy. He's bond to say things that couldn't be done, and that's the type of thing that _couldn't_ be undone.

So try to imagine how much of a shock Will parent put him through by announcing his sudden marriage to the sole Heiress of Ramírez-Arellano? If you guess it's enough to give him a heart attack then your guess is, unfortunately, correct.

Truly, this has to be a nightmare, his mind chimed. A sick, twisted, nightmare orchestrated beautifully by his fear of tying down to someone;

To be devoted to someone;

To be _everything_ to someone.

Will inwardly groaned.

Oh Lord, just by thinking about it, Will stomach already did a summersault just for the sake of it.

Gulping down his quickly moving upward breakfast, Will try to focus his attention to the other side of his cart window. The bumpiness of his carriage did help him straight his mind a bit. But the grim view definitely does not.

What Will saw is an endless row of death tress, greeting him with black void aura of uneasiness, that something wrong, _oh so wrong_ , is going to take place. Only to be covered by a hopeful freshly fallen snow on their dead, sharp-looking, branches.

As Will soak in the view in sullen silent, he worriedly started to question himself: What will come of this? Will this bring happiness to his family? And what about him? Will he live happy (or at least satisfied) with this new wife of his? Or will he keep screwing up like he always does? Making his family even _more_ poorer?

Oh for the love of God, that last question is in need of a positive answer. Like, _right_ _now_.

Inwardly, Will sighed.

There is no use on dwendelling the question that will be answered in a few hours, his brain said wisely (and oddly). If Will was patient enough, he will get his answer, whether he like it or not.

With this truly unsatisfying conclusion, his carriage keep on moving onward, unknowingly bringing a young man in his early twenties to an early demise.

Literally.

"Oh come on, sonny!" Will's father chirped from the driver seat, "being engaged wasn't all _that_ bad! Look at your Pop here, stuck marrying an ancient miserable widow and still radiating happiness like the sun! Ah, truly this situation is in need of a Haiku!"

Hurriedly like a rat trying to dodge a trap, Will make a reply to save his already endangered life. "No thank you, Father. I'm fine. Honestly, there's no need for a Haiku."

Sited beside her son, Will's mother let out a nasty scowl. "Hmm? What's this about 'Ancient Miserable Widow', my dear _Husband_?"

"Nothing, dearest!" Will just had to stifle a laugh at his father, the way he answered his wife question is identical to that of a little girl shrieking in fright, high pitch and all.

Huh, it seem Will's father have forgotten that his wife were also riding along in this little trip with them, the old fart. And _he_ said his wife was the ancient one in the family.

Apollo Solace is a man in his mid forties, striking gold hair now dimming to grey as old age starting to catch up to him. Will admit, his father is pretty fit for a man his age. Tan body lean with muscle and skin almost untouched by wrinkle, having those rare ageing-so-damn-slow face. No wonder he still considered himself a Heartthrob, the egotistical old fart.

Will's mother on the other hand, is the complete opposite. Diana Solace could be mistaken for a woman in her late sixties with so many wrinkle decorating her pale skin. Stern grey-like moon eyes circled by black circles, like Panda. But instead of it being cute, it just look disturbing. Especially for a toddler. Oh, the poor toddler. Diana's lock of black hair was tied into a messy bun, grey hair even more evident as an obvious contrast.

As their only son, Will know a concerning amount of nothing about his parent backstory. He know nothing of how they meet, how their's life before marriage, heck even his grandparent is a complete unknown. The only thing they are happy to share is that they are forced into marriage, presumably by the said grandparent. Other than that, zero. _Complete_ and _utter_ mystery.

But enough about his parent, let's talk about Will. This delightful young man over here is moiling over his fate as an engaged youth, but you charming individuals out there already quite informed about this, am I correct? Then let's talk about how this particular gentleman look!

Appearance wise, Will Solace is almost an exact replica of his father. Wheat blond hair, sky blue eyes, and the sun-kissed skin. The only thing he lack from Apollo gen is his muscle, which, much to his annoyance, get him ridiculed by his father a _lot._

Wearing midnight blue vest over his white dress button-up shirt, Will sure look dapper. The young man fiddled with his cheery-yellow coloured butterfly tie, finding it ridiculous. His father had been really adamant of him wearing this particular accessory, the old geezer. Will try to roll the shirt long sleeve into his elbow, only to be greeted by his mother smacking. Afraid to meet Diana's terrifying eyes, the young man look down to his brown cleaned-to-perfection-shoes, biting his bottom lips in a sulking manner.

Personality wise, his mother is quite delighted to fine he took a lot from her. Will wasn't quite sure about that though. Like his parent, Will took a liking to archery, but not for hunting like his father usually force him to do, but only as a fun hobby to past time.

You see, Diana is an avid nature lover, a vegetarian, tree hugger, whichever you like to call them. So of course she's mortified by the activity of hunting, always in a big fight whenever Apollo come home with a pig in tow. So you can imagine how delighted she is to found out the son that she previously thought a carbon copy of her idiotic husband enjoy archery and respected nature as much as her. She rubbed this in Apollo face quite frequently. Too many to count actually.

And speaking of nature...

"Mother, are you sure about bringing these monstrous sunflower around?"

Annoyedly, the blond youth smack one of the offending leaf of the said sunflower away from him, only to get his hand slapped back by his mother.

"Don't smack them! They are fragile!" She scolded, eyes could burn hole into a fabric. " _Deary_ , explain why this sunflower is important to our _dimwitted_ son."

"Alright, Sweetie Pie~" Apollo ignored the way his wife cringed at his pet name for her, attention solely on their son, leaving the carriage to move without a driver.

"Willy, sonny, this horrendous excuse of a flower here-" Wife's glare ignored, "Is here for one reason alone; and that is to show off our wealth and knowledge to the Arellano's! Can't be ridiculed for our poor status now, can we?"

Hearing this, Will frowned. "Father, we _are_ poor. How could a measly sunflower prove what we are not?"

"Look at the size, sonny!" Apollo unnecessarily pointed, " _look_ at it!"

The younger Solace try to refrain himself from rolling his eyes at the absurdity that is his father.

"Alright, it's huge, I understand that. Then what? Is that it?" Will wholeheartedly shown how impressed he is by this fact, or lack of it there of.

Already foresaw a banter between the males in the family, Diana cut in. "What your idiotic father trying to say here is that; By showing this sunflower to the Arellano's, our family will be acknowledge to what the Solace _clearly_ deserve to hold for centuries. The _nerve_ of them striving our glory!"

The distaste for this particular subject is quite obvious by the woman foul attitude, but that's not what Will concern himself about as his mother words replayed again and again in his mind, finding it odd.

"Wait, 'Acknowledgement'? What's this all about?" Will questioned, mouth tugging downward at his parent sudden silent. "Father? ...Mother?"

"Honey, I think you spoke too much," Apollo commented, ever the one to read the mood.

His wife snapped, "I know that, you buffoon!"

Not the type of person to be giving in until satisfied, Will voice up his suspicion. "Is this engagement of mine only a tool for this family? To achieve some... _Thing_?"

Again, his parent clam up like a clam.

The young Solace continue on, more angry as the second tick by. "Well, if my suspicion are correct, I'm having none of it! Father, turn around! I demand we go home, _now_!"

"No can't do, Son. We need you for this," Apollo's eyes were on the road, hand clutched tightly to the horses rope, either not realising or ignoring the way his son stiffened.

That tone... His father never use that kind of tone to him before... And the way his eyes glare off into the distance... It was _terrifying_.

Eyeing the inside of the cart and finding that only the carriage door stand between him and his life as a single happy Heartthrob, Will decide to go for it. Leg ready to kick-

His attempt at running away are suddenly stopped.

 _Ahh, what the-?!_

Vines. Long slithering vines somehow find its way onto Will's body, wrapping it real good and tight. Will's hands practically digging into his hips because of how tight they are.

 _Ugh, what in God's name-?!_

Eyes widening in panic, the young man look up, searching for the source of his misery. And low and behold, it was his mother, or her's sunflower to be exact. The root of the blasted thing make its way out of its pot, now hugging Will's body tightly like a serpent to its prey.

"Mother, what are your plant doing? H-help?" Will gulped, expression turning into a grimace.

Diana shook her head, face unreadable. "It's not the plant, sweetie, it's only a mother doing her job."

Her son frowned. "You're the one doing this?! ...How?"

Apollo spoke up, finally giving his full attention to the bantering son and mother, and also his coorporation to the problem at hand.

"Don't worry, sonny. We'll explain everything _after_ your marriage to the lovely daughter of Arellano's. Oh, I can't wait for that! I heard she have a dog, wonder if they are cute?"

 _Not helping father,_ Will's mind screamed, _not_ _helping._

The rest of the trip is then spend in silent.

* * *

 **A/N: Hello! I'm Dilly, and this fic were suppose to be a one-shot Halloween project that was soon forgotten by the me in the past! ...It's kinda sad really.**

 **And seeing as how this is February and Halloween definitely wouldn't come any sooner, I decide to just, "Screw it!" and post it even though there weren't any creepy stuff in February. Does Valentine count?**

 **Anyway, disclaimer! I do not own the PJO or the HOO series, I would love to claim otherwise but Uncle Rick gonna sue my ass if I did. So nope, do not own anything.**

 **Hope you guys enjoy this Prologue, Will is a pie to write! ...No, I lie, he's far from being a pie, he's hard, cookies-making hard. Maybe because I suck at cooking. But he's fun, so I forgive him.**

 **So please review? I give you a cookie! A cookie that have burnt to crisp so... Maybe not... But please do?**

 **Hmm, this is awkward. See you next time, I guess? Bye, good bye, ciao.**

 **Still here? What are you doing?**

 **Okay, for real this time.**

 **Bye!**


	2. A Manor's Secrets

**1: A Manor's Secrets**

* * *

Gawking, is - unfortunately - Will's default reaction on handling the Ramírez-Arellano's massive residency.

Now led by a very scary butler, Will can't help but think how awful his day have been.

The experience of being stuck hours within the carriage - tied like some sort of abducted helpless children (that he truly was) by his evil parent couldn't possibly prepare him for the future of shock and trauma he's currently forced into. Even though that entire hours was spend on him doodling on the possibility.

The residence, as a massive understatement of the century, was _nice_. Your typical Victorian-Eastern Europe architecture the Rich's usually dwelt them-self into. That is, if you times them by ten with a nugget of gold icing on top. The Ramírez-Arellano's Manor obviously couldn't be put beside a poor word like 'Typical'. Far from it.

The Manor, from what the blond youth could tell, was five stories tall with maybe an attic on top. The roofs were unusually jagged and dark for Will's humble taste, giving it an almost disorienting feeling he rather ignore. There's also an additional wings that Will avoided like the plauge, the place where he seriously didn't want himself to get mixed into. Pathetically enough, he already foresaw a lost young man walking around without any prior knowledge of _where_ he is or _where_ he ended up.

Will shook his head frantically. No, _no_! _Not_ going to happen!

He hoped.

Will looked away, frowning as he spot yet again another vines covered walls for the umpteenth times in this sort of tour of his, remembering his more-than-ugly earlier experience with one. The walls consist of groups of black-painted bricks, cracking there and there showing it ages, but it was also decorated by painted portraits. Painting everywhere glued to the walls as far as the eyes could see. The floor on the other hand, was _smooth_. Marble at its finest, shinier than a bald head under the sun heated glares.

His shoes make a weird _clip, clop_ sound as he venture around the spacious hallway, still being leaded by the old scarred yet handsome butler. He worriedly looked back to where his parent was, finding them trotting not too far away from him, amusingly holding an exact opposite expression from one another.

His father, Apollo - not an exaggeration in the least - was skipping. Happily humming some random tune he came up on the spot, hands swaying by his side. His wife on the other hand, was positively _fuming_. Her stare bore into the plant clutched in her hand, as if waiting for it to die on her and say: "See ya, pal! I'm going to go to Paradise! Whoooo!"

Will blinked. Okay, that was _weird_ , even for his brain.

Fortunately, Diana pay him no mind, gaze still fixed on the offending sunflower. Face showing unhappiness at its purest form. She pay no heed of attention to her increasingly dirty gown, same shade of blue as her son vest now covered by falling soil.

Her husband though, caught it right up. A chariot driver who noticed a cat in the middle of a road a bit too late.

(Will, again, blinked. What's with him and strange metaphor these days?)

Will's parent whispered some words into one another ears that their son grudgingly can't hear. The blond youth hold back a scowl at the idea of _him_ needing to get closer if he even _want_ to catch a glimpse of hint to unlocking the mystery that his family have kept. Unluckily for him, Lady Luck seem to favour his parent as of today, as no luck was given to Little Willy that night.

What makes Will thinks Lady Luck was standing on the opposite side of him, you ask? Well, it's simple really. It's because when the young man was leaded into the inside of a huge wooden double doors, he was suddenly confronted to a barrel of a gun.

A _bloody gun_. Literally.

Will screamed.

Fighting the urge to just run and get the hell away from the stupidly eery Manor - the place where he _will_ lose his virginity - a sudden manic, _hysteric_ laugh halted him in his track. It thundered through the building like an earthquake, oddly making Will's blood run cold and boiling at the same time.

He feel angry - no _livid_ , as those laugh bounced around in the inside of his head; mocking, _sneering_ at him. Yet, at the same time, he was scared. Scared of what, Will doesn't quite know exactly. It certainly wasn't for his life, he realised.

It was an odd experience, Will sure can testify to that.

His train of thought though, was suddenly shattered, by the man who's holding the bloody gun right at his face a mere seconds ago. Ugh, why do Will want to punch this man's face _so_ badly?

As if sensing his anger, the man smirked.

"Geez, kid. Did you heard your own scream?! Well, let me inform you, kid, you have one hell of a girly shrilly voice there! You sure you have the balls down there, kiddo?" The man cackled yet again. His oddest features (except for his scarred cheeks), a sunglasses, rocking along with him.

Face flushed red, Will wasn't quite sure how to respond to that. Thankfully, someone swoop in and come to his rescue.

"Ares, I thought we agreed on _not_ pointing _any_ sort of weapon to our guests?" A woman came, descending from a sweeping grand staircase Will finally noticed in the middle of the gigantic room. A bronze boar ornament was attached to its silver glistening banister. The woman gloved hand trailing along it in perfect grace. Her eyes pierced onto Will's, reminding him of his mother.

The muscular man who's oddly wearing sunglasses indoor, scoffed. "I only agreed on not showing my _knifes_ , you never said anything about _guns_. You need to be more specific with your demand, _dearest_."

The woman, presumably the man's wife, give him a ghost of a smile, holding a hellish fire in her eyes. "Proud to find a loop hole, are you, _dear Husband_?"

Huh, definitely the same as his mother alright.

As he await the woman descend in nervousness, Will shifted his attention to his father, only just now arrived at the scene, pushing the huge double doors Will previously come front with a huff. The older blond panic was obvious to the world as he search around the too huge-too suave of a room, brows knitted together in a worry. He then scan the area in a hurry, eyes finally landing on his son.

Apollo bolted to where Will stood, surprising the younger blond immensely.

"Oh, _Willy_! You alright, sonny?! You didn't get hurt were you?!" Suddenly suffocated by his father super deathly super painful bear hugs, Will nodded the best as he can. At least, as best as a person that is blue in the face could manage.

Absentmindedly, he wondered why Apollo was so distraught, did something bad happen while he was away? Then his brain soon provided him with a flashback of Will screaming _bloody murder?!_ literally only minutes ago.

Will frowned. _Oh_ _yeah, that was a thing. Kinda forgot. I_ would _remember sooner if I_ wasn't _being_ _suffocated?!_

His mother voice soon entered his ears, her black high heels making that distracting _clip_ , _clop_ sound as she also entered the double doors. It's a miracle Will even heard her. Seeing how he still didn't have his minutes dosis of air. Ugh, the hug... God, why is it so _tight_...?!

"Apollo, you idiot!" Diana snapped, monstrous sunflower failed miserably to cover her murderous glare. "Our son can't _breath_! Let go of him!"

Realising his wife was correct, Apollo soon release his deathly grip on his only child, expression sheepish as he try to rub Will's back none-too-gently with a rough hand. The old man remained oblivious to the added suffering he caused to his son mental _and_ physical health.

"Better, sonny?" The old geezer asked, the grin that would be described by Diana as idiotic, foolish, and moronic yet charming all at the same time still plastered on his face.

Taking a big chunk of oxygen, Will - feeling like he's been doing a lot of nodding lately - nodded. "Better," _now that I don't have_ you _taking away my air..._ He graciously left that part unvoiced.

An unknown voice soon entered the family - also the muscular man and the forgotten butler - ears. Succesfully taking away their attention.

"Oh my!" Said the voice. "What a lovely family interaction we have _here_. How's our guests doing tonight? Enjoying the Manor yet?" The woman from before finally reach the floor where they all stood and gathered, dragging a rather lengthy purple dress with her. A perfectly gloved hands firmly clasped in front of her stomach, her posture as stiff as a board.

The woman smiled a small smile with her equally small - covered by red lipstick - lips, _full_ of hidden meaning. But instead of it directed to the Solace, her eyes stayed firmly on the raggedy man she called 'Ares' minutes ago, different silent emotions flashed through her not-so-warm black eyes.

In response to this, Will guessed the man rolled his eyes under his sunglasses, engrossed on tousling his black oily crew cut.

The blond youth could only stare in silent grimace as the man fished out a sharp-looking knife from his leather tux - that Will _swore_ was made out of a boars skin - and fiddling with it with disinterest. His attention solely on the knife making it quite obvious he's trying to ignore his wife.

If she realised this, she haven't show it yet.

The woman drew a breath, gaze now shifting to her guests. "It's already past dinner, I'm _truly_ sorry we couldn't greet your family in a formal way. But seeing as though we were all _here_ , introduction seem to be appropriate. Any objection?"

No one dare to deny her. Will catch the butler look down to his feet - terrified to meet the woman eyes maybe? Regardless, she smiled, truly pleased. And an introduction of herself soon begin.

"I, am Bellona. Currently the _highest_ standing Lady of the Ramírez-Arellano. And this wild man over here," she motioned to the man beside her. "Is my husband, Lord Ares. Say hello, _darling_."

Lord Ares let out a nasty snarl, begrudgingly did what he was told. It was clear as a bell the man didn't like them, not one _bit_.

Apollo though - _curse_ the old man - was oblivious to the shown hostility, directing a thousand watt smile to the couple.

"Wow, it's _nice_ to finally be blessed with your grace, Lady Bellona! I'm Apollo. Lord Apollo of the Solace! You too Lord Ares!" He then shook hand with their hosts rather too excitedly, disregarding the other Lord pointed glare at his action.

Will's mother - oh, _bless_ her! - let out a cough too loud to be natural, eyes practically burning a hole to the back of her husband head.

"Oh _honey_ , aren't you forgetting _something_?" Through gritted teeth she said this, tone layered with sugar. Diana sure was in a bad mood tonight.

The older blond stopped for a moment, sky blue eyes blinking owlishly.

"Huh, _oh yeah_! Forgot to introduce my son here!" It should have occurred to Will sooner choosing to be tight lipped in this type of situation wouldn't save him from any further embarrassment from his father, only making it _worse_. So, as his father came to his side - giving him a one-handed hug - he come to his own rescue.

Will give his soon-to-be parent-in-law a sloppy bow, secretly trying to shove Apollo away from him. "The name's Will, sir, madam. Will Solace. It's... An _honour_ meeting a Lord and a Lady such as yourself."

Apollo looked disappointed at the prospect of him not uttering his favourite pet name for his son as a first impression to the Arellano's - not realising he did do that while glopping his son earlier. But he let it slide, feeling giddy as he next introduce his lovely wife to their hosts.

"So, you have been properly introduced to Will and I," Apollo begin. "But this lovely lady over here," Giving the said lady the same treatment as Will, a one-handed hug, Apollo grinned from ear to ear. "Is my beautiful wife! And also Will's mother. Say hello to Lady Diana!"

It was clear that Diana was unamused by this, nor did she like it. But nonetheless, she gave a polite nod as a greeting, sunflower that was in her hands blobbing up and down mimicking her.

Lord Ares, finally giving an interest to the conversation at hand, sneered. The knife he's been gingerly holding coming back to his tux.

"You sure she's your wife, _Polly_?" He commented, fully smirking. "She looks like she can pose as your mum."

Ever the proud individual, Diana fought back with a snarl, pushing an offended Apollo to the side - a silent gesture to _back off_. "Hmph, at least _I_ have the normality to _act_ like my current age and not _failing_ to act like a rapscallion teenagers."

A growl was her reply and she pompously ignored it. "Honestly Lord Ares, I expect _so_ much more from you. Never would I guessed you to be so... _Childish_."

The man in sunglasses quickly made a rebuttal of his own, eyes twitching behind his glasses. "Huh, quite feisty for an old woman I see. I'm gonna be honest with you now, it _ain't_ fit."

Will jaw was slacked, eyes moving back and forth between the two heated bantering contestant. He prayed for his mother sake, he really did. His father was already full blown on cheering. Booing at Lord Ares occasionally.

Lady Bellona though, wasn't planning on cheering for her husband. She just felt a headache kicking in.

"Ares, _please_ ," the Lady pleaded. "Leave our guests _alone_."

Her husband let out a breath, practically smelling the punishment he's going to get through if he even _dare_ to raise an objection.

Lord Ares gaze was directed somewhere else - maybe to the hung chandelier? - silently fuming.

"Okay, _sweetheart_ ," the Lord grumpily agreed. "Whatever you desired."

His wife beamed a pleased smile, violence surely avoided. Oddly enough, Will feel an itch to add 'for now' to the end of his sentence there, wonder why?

Will's line of thoughts was ruined once again. Now it's the wife turn to ruined it.

"Oh my, _oh my_!" The auburn haired Lady out-of-nowherely clapped both of her hands loudly, quite clear she was demanding attention. "That's a _beautiful_ sunflower in your hands, Lady Diana. Could this be a present for _us_?"

Diana only smiled, bitterness hidden perfectly.

Will heard quite clearly Lady Bellona remark on his mother accursed plant. The two woman then engage in a quiet conversation. Exterior showing a very relaxed expression as if they were talking to an old acquaintance, but the interior was very much weary of one another. Or 'Suspicious' if you want to get technical.

It's quite obvious to Will this isn't a simple soon-to-be formed family gathering. He was _sure_ of that.

And looking to Lady Bellona glistening eyes: silent malice quickly flashing as she greedily eyed his mother sunflower, is enough of a prove to a hidden reasoning behind it all.

And Will be _damned_ if he didn't _try_ to thrust it all out to the open.

"Mother?" A young woman voice soon entered his ears. "What's going on here?"

Will stiffened.

He slowly glanced upward, praying for his own sake that it wasn't who he think it is.

Unfortunately, Lady Luck decide it was funny to play the Bitch part on Will's life that night. Seriously, the _bitch_. Will never did anything wrong to her!

Back to the situation at hand: There's a new arrival adding to the group, a young woman - much to the blond youth dismay. She was standing on top of the grand staircase, pretty much the same as her mother beforehand, black glossy eyes bore onto Will's blue one.

"Ah, Reyna!" Lady Bellona called, delighted. "Glad you can finally join us! Everyone! Meet my youngest daughter-"

Something inside of Will snapped. He no longer heard her. He _can't_. _Wouldn't_.

A name is ringing in his ears: _Reyna_ _Avila Ramírez-Arellano._

No doubt about it. It _is_ her.

—His _fiancée._

The younger Solace gulped.

 _Oh boy._

* * *

 **A/N: Geez, this chapter took _way_ longer than I anticipated! The chapter length is much more longer too. But hey, every author got to write those annoying exposition once in awhile, am I right?**

 **...Right?**

 **Ah, _shit_ , forgot I type anything. **

**Honestly though, I'm kinda sad no one reviewed last chapter. But then again, it _was_ a prologue, maybe I should have expected that... (Or maybe it's the cookies fault? I blame it on the cookies.)**

 **Hmm, on a lighter note: Thank you so, _so_ much for the favs and follows you guys been giving to this story! And trust me, _any_ action you made regarding my story, is truly appreciated.**

 **There's really not much action in this chapter unfortunately, I'm really disappointed with that. I want to squeeze in more, but you guys probably get bored out of your mind with more-or-less 5k words of story material. So! I cut those into two for you guys. Hope you guys don't mind...?**

 **Hmm, ...oh! Look at that! A disclaimer!**

 **DillyTheWombat do not own anything related to the PJO and HOO book series. If they said otherwise, call the police on them. Quickly. A guy named Rick would greatly appreciate your action to the society.**

 **Phew, now that's done, we can get them out of the way-**

 **...H-hey, what the-?! Police?! Where the hell do they came front?! W-wait a minute! My laptop! My precious laptop! Don't take my baby away from me, pleeeease! Oh, _please_ I beg of you I-...?!**

 ***The internet connection have been cut. Literally***

 **Edit (3/1/2016): The ending - for me - feel rushed, so! I fixed it for you guys! Enjoy an extra paragraph or two!**

 **How can a person without an internet connection could possibly update the chapter, you ask?**

 **...Well, uhm, _damn_. **

**You've seen nothing! It's an illusion! Go buy gold or something! Bye!**


	3. A Lady's Heart, Stone or Silk?

**2: A Lady's Heart, Stone or Silk?**

* * *

"Well, sonny, isn't _she_ a special snowflake?"

Apollo giddy whisper have reached his ear, hot breath puffing out of him. The old man was _way_ too happy for this, the young man felt like. Rather than make a move to scold him, Will could only muster a forced smile as a reply, his internal turmoil hidden to the world, more so to his parent than anyone else really.

The young woman - _Reyna_ , he chided himself - has reached the bottom of the floor with the grace of a swan, equal or almost beating the fluidness that her mother has. Her raven hair was styled into a neat single braid, bouncing on her left shoulder as she made her way quietly to the group. Glossy black eyes still sneaked its way onto Will's wide one, unwavering.

Will himself, quite ashamedly, couldn't keep his eyes away from her. He mutedly observe her from the side, wondering when would she lost her gaze on him.

Curiously, he decided to really _look_ at her.

Lady Reyna was wearing something akin to that of a toga, the blond youth realise. Her dress is purple in colour - the same shade as her mother - and was made with the finest silk the land could offer. A robe of sort was draped around her shoulders, the colour similar to that of twilight. She wore no make up, but her natural beauty alone already chilled Will to the bone. Her eyes sharp like steel - very much the eyes of a warrior. Much to his dismay, it was directed pretty much _at him_ , making him a queasy, flustering, mess.

The young man subconsciously advert his eyes away, biting his bottom lips as a nervous habit.

 _Oh Lord_ , how can they expect _him_ to marry such gracious beautiful young lady?

He felt sick.

"Will...? Wake up, sonny! _Wake up_!"

 _A slap to both of his cheeks sure do the trick!_ What's probably scroll through Apollo's mind.

And it sure did.

"Ouch!" Will rubbed his reddening cheeks in reflex, sending his father a confused glare. "Father! What was _that_ for?!"

The older blond uber a failed whisper to his son ears, gripping his son shoulders unnecessarily tight. "Lady Reyna is trying to _talk_ you, sonny."

Feeling the hair behind his neck prickling, the both of them immediately switched their gazes to the other occupants of the room, soon realising they were the object of a judging, _incriminating_ stare from all of them. Diana the worse out of the group.

Ah, Will wasn't quite sure on who was scarier: his mother death glare or Lady Bellona simple smile?

If he has ask this, say, _tomorrow_ to himself: the award, with no doubt, would befall to Lady Bellona's ever so gracious laps. But present Will wouldn't know such a thing now, would he?

The blond youth coughed onto his fist, cheeks dusted with pink dust yet again, apologising heartedly. "Uhm, I-I'm _truly_ sorry for my...-! Ah, daydreaming? I-is there something you want to ask of me, Milady?"

His future wife give him a look. He immediately clam up, cold sweats dampening his forehead.

"Yes," the young lady begin. "There _is_ one actually. Can you...-"

Lord Ares decided to interrupt in the nick of time, smirking to Will in an obvious, _jerk_ , manner. "Well, _Sugarplum_ , I guess we should leave you alone with your dear _fiancée_ now. Isn't that right, _dearest_?"

 _Sugerplum?_ Will muttered to himself, baffled. Is that suppose to be a loving pet name for _Reyna_? The blond doesn't know if he should laugh or pity her. Heck, his father have his moment, but he wasn't _that_ bad.

Lady Bellona hum in agreement brought him back into reality, she looked appealed to say the least. "Oh yes, dear Husband, how right you are! Communication before marriage is the _most_ important part! Well, second place after the actual vow that is."

Her daughter seemingly wanted to object to that: that _no_ , she doesn't want to be left with Will alone. She wanted to voice up her dislike on doing something, _anything_ with the likes of _him_. But the young woman decided to choose otherwise, clamming up herself.

Did Will imagine that up? He wondered.

After her - possible - lament, Lady Reyna looked away, eyes downcast. "...Thank you, Mother. For your... _Considered_ choices for me."

"Oh, _of course_ , Sweetheart! Anything for _my_ daughter."

Lady Bellona soon come to her daughter side, cupping one of her cheek and caressing it with a gloved hand. Even though the action itself was affectioned, the one you expect from a mother to share with her child, the blond youth could see that they were _something_ behind this seemingly loving gesture. Say, it was _obvious_ in Will's eyes they were holding a secret conversation of sort with one another, the same as his parent before hand.

And there's also the fact that... That something _incredibly_ wrong, that is _far_ from right, was crossing their faces.

Again, Will caught that flash of malice behind the older woman's eyes. The way she caress her daughter cheek too, it wasn't _normal_. It seem rough, unnatural, _too bold_ , as if it was a brand new experience for her.

Reyna, though, is what he was curious to learn more about.

Gone the steel hearted Lady he have as a first impression today. It was replaced by this pitifu, _meek_ woman who's helplessness seem out of place with her hardened exterior. The woman he was supposed to be married off with, the one he thought was a proud noble, stone hearted... Was _crushed_.

Could he imagined all of this? All their interaction? Those weird _gestures_?

He scoffed at the idea.

Sure that's his mother always said that he have a wild, uncontrollable imagination. An imagination that lead his brain to twist the truth into something uglier, something _horrific_. An imagination that also was unfit to be seen as an adult that he is now.

 _"You are no longer a child, Will,"_ his mother would say. _"Stop forcing your fantasy into our reality!"_

But Will swore, this Mother-Daughter moment - if it even could be _called_ as such - that he had witnessed, was _far_ from being a fantasy. It was real, as _real_ as his reality. The reality that _dictate_ him to surrender to his parent wills, to be married off to this _stranger_ named Reyna.

And this Reyna - his future wife mind you - was in trouble, so his concern is valid as much as anyone concerned.

He wondered, if he talk to her, would he get to the bottom of this families secrets? Would it be a not-so-world-changing secretes they have been hiding from him? To this already shaken up world of his?

Will hoped so.

The young man soon felt a tap on his shoulder, that was immediately followed by a cold; "Stop staring at the Mistresses."

Will shifted his gaze to the hand owner over his shoulder, surprised to find the ever-so-silent butler the one who was making the move.

Ashamedly, he admitted he have forgotten all about him.

The butler was tall - frighteningly so, an enormous mountain! A head taller than him and Will was no shorty thank you very much. The man sandy blond hair was covered by a raggedy black fedora, scarred face shadowed by it. From his hand alone the blond youth could see that this old man was packed to the brim with muscle under that wrinkled skin of his. Could Will handle him if he was forced to fight this man?

Probably not.

With this observation recorded safely into his brain, the blond youth made a mental note to never, _ever_ angered the butler. Too bad that the warning might be a bit _too_ late seeing as the scarred butler fixed him with the most _unsettling_ jaded blue eyes he's ever seen.

In response to this, Will give the mountain of a man a sheepish smile.

They were stuck like that for a few more minutes. Anxiously, the younger of the two keep on waiting, for something, _anything_ : for the man to make the first move.

Lord Ares beat him to it though.

"Oi, Luke!" The Lord shouted, presumably calling for the butler. "I'm _starving_ here! Tell the chefs we're having a second dinner!"

And with that, the butler let loose his deathly grip on Will's shoulder, excusing himself.

"A minutes My Lord," was his parting words before he step out of the room, emotionless all the way.

Will felt conflicted. Should he felt... _Threatened_ by that?

"Oh, dinner!" Will's father chimed, blurring his frightening thought. "That's remind me, we didn't eat _anything_ on our ride! Ah, tummy's grumbling..."

" _We_?" His wife questioned, emotions clearly badly controlled. "You mean _you_. Will and I had eaten the lunch I brought! If you just open the lunch box I _gave_ you-...!"

"-But your cooking is _terrible_!"

You could just _hear_ the sound of something snapping in the room.

"Father?" Will soon called.

Apollo whipped his head to his son, wife unintentionally ignored. "Oh, what is it, sonny?"

Will shook his head, smiling apathetically. "It nice knowing you, Father."

His pops tried to open up his mouth to ask, but dirt already found its way into his mouth.

Apollo's eyes widen.

"W-what the he-...?! _Blegh_!"

Diana was positively red in the face, stuffing her husband mouth with the sunflower soil she cradled in her arms, very much enjoying herself. Maybe a bit _too_ much.

"So? Don't like _my cooking_ , huh?! Is the taste of dirt more appealing to you, _dearest_?!"

"N-no... Honey! I'm-... _Hump_!" And another dirt flew into his mouth. Will was positive he saw a caterpillar sneak it way in there.

He shrugged, smiling fondly. What his father didn't know, wouldn't kill him.

"Oh, Lord Apollo!" Lady Bellona abruptly remarked, covering her mouth in shock as the scene of bickering husband and wife unfolded in front of her eyes. "Good God, you need water to gulp that down! Let's get you into the kitchen!"

"W-wait a minute...!" Diana exclaimed in surprise, seeing her man suddenly roped into another woman embrace.

Lady Bellona simply smiled, gripping onto Apollo's hand - the owner who was gawking with dirt in his mouth - as she lead him to the gigantic double doors, opening it with ease. They quickly step through it, the Lady's auburn hair swaying with an imaginary breeze.

Without them knowing, they left a _very_ jealous wife and a _very_ angry husband in their wake.

"W-wait, Bellona! What are you going to do with that guy?! Oi, wait up!" Lord Ares demanded, running after them, cursing like a sailor.

Diana followed suit. "I'm not done with you yet, Apollo! Apollo, you _heard_ me?!"

Will shook his head.

Ah, the life of the old married couples. Aren't they amusing?

It occurred to Will a bit _too_ late that the only one who were left in the room was him and Reyna.

Alone. _Together_.

Lady Bellona weird antics suddenly _make sense_.

Nevertheless, Will took the unexpected opportunity with a grain of salt.

He waved a hand to her, smiling an awkward smile. "Uhm, h-hello there."

"Hello to you too," she said curtly.

Will eyes widen. Different from the first time they've meet, now she seemed afraid to make eyes contact with him, not even lifting her head to greet him.

It wasn't like Will to just leave it at that, so he tried again.

"It's...-" He scratched the back of his head, trying to come up with something. "-A nice _weather_ we have lately, huh?"

She simply nodded. "Yeah, it is."

Another curt answer.

Now Will was desperate. "Can you... At least show me where's the dinner room is?"

The Lady finally lifted her head. Will was tempted to gasp, would she finally acknowledge him?!

"...Let me think about it."

And she's back on fiddling with the hem of her dress.

 _Of course_ , why did he ever thought otherwise?

Will openly groaned.

Ugh, what do a young man must do over here to make a small conversation?!

Thankfully, God seem to take pity on him and relented. Was it a mere coincidence that he found that _thing_ sitting like an ugly duckling in the corner of the room? It probably was.

He felt weird though, he should have noticed it the moment he stepped his foot onto this gigantic room. But then again, he _did_ have a... Life threatening situation with Lord Ares earlier. He like to think that _anyone_ would excuse him for that.

Will choose to walk up to it, admiring it up close.

The blond youth soon find himself trailing his fingers onto it dusty surface, mouth quirked upward even if the object of he was so transfixed with could have seen a better days.

It was a grand piano, an old ancient thing that was fancy and luxurious. Well, _should_ have been fancy and luxurious. It black wooden surface was littered with dusts and cobwebs, the sound of wood cracking beneath his touch only proved further it ancientness. It's undoubtedly the definition of the exact opposite of fancy, amusingly enough.

Without any comment or command, he sited himself on the piano seat, very much the _happiest_ he's ever been in this miserable journey of his.

Feeling bold, he begin to play a simple tune.

He hummed along as his fingers moved with familiarity, never once realising he have melted a woman's heart near him.

This tune... It sure bring back memories, he mused. A memory he should have forgotten, that he _promised_ to forget, but for whatever reason, _didn't_.

That old man... The one who teach him this... What did he call this tune again? The Melancholy of Hell? Yeah, that must be it... It enchanting yet foreboding enough to be called as such.

 _"Remember Will,"_ the old man would say, green eyes ever so bright. _"Only play this tune whenever something is troubling you. Don't worry, son. Soon, he would came and open up your heart."_

From his childhood to this very day, he never understood what he mean by that. Heck, he doesn't even _know_ what his relation to this old man was, but Will took his company for granted. He enjoyed every second he was left by his parent with this strange man he never know the name of. The old man seem to always had some _crazy_ tale he needed to told, what he _itchingly_ wanted to tell the young'un.

The stories themeself usually revolve around his time in this surreal place he called the 'Underworld', a place that couldn't be real, can't even hope to exist in this gradually technological world of theirs. But the man _insisted_ that it did.

( _"What's an Underworld, you ask? Well, it's a place where mythical creatures exist, child!"_ Was what little Willy get when he asked about it).

And Will jaw would surely goes slack whenever he heard of them, enchanted by the tale.

He smiled in fondness, how he missed those simpler days.

Will find himself wrapping up his reminiscing, never expecting an encore for his - what he thought was an - underwhelming performance.

But _she_ did it anyway.

"That... Was _beautiful_."

Will grinned cheekily at her, letting his guard down. "Why, thank you! It's the second best thing I'm good at actually."

Then he realise _who_ exactly he's bragging himself on to. _Gah, what an idiot!_

Lady Reyna just stood there beside the tattered piano, when did she get so close to him was a mystery, unimpressiveness practically oozing from her features.

Well, he guessed he deserve that.

"So," she open up her mouth, "what's the first one?"

It took Will's brain a seconds to fully process that, brain buffering, so he braved himself to ask of her: "Excuse me, can you, uh, repeat that again?"

 _Oh God_ , his mind screamed, _is she actually talking to_ me _?!_

She seemed annoyed at the prospect of repeating herself, but she obliged anyway. "I said, what's the first thing you're good at?"

 _She really_ is _talking to me!_

It's quite the miracle he didn't hyperventilate right there and then, really.

"Oh! ...Oh, _that_ ," he begin lamely, finally making an attempt to answer her. "It's archery. It's... Kinda run in the family."

"Hmm, archery huh...?" Her eyes moved up and down curiously, inspected him. "I can see that."

By the tone she was using, it was as if she know already. _Poowie, s_ _o much for trying to impress her,_ he thought.

"I'm assuming you want to join the King's army?" She asked once again, fingers pushing the piano's notes absentmindedly, eyes never leaving his own.

Will accompany her on her random notes pushing, making a strange strained harmony from one another.

He laugh humourlessly at her question, shooking his head. "Ha, _as if_! If that was the case, my father would kiss me out of sheer happiness until I _die_."

Reyna can't help but to show her surprisement at that.

"An able young man who are not interested in power?" She beamed an amused smile to his direction, guard cracking he hoped. "You are quite the weird specimen, Sir Will."

Will chuckled, continuing their odd harmony. "Thank you, Lady Reyna. Just wait until you heard my parent reaction when I said I wanted to be a doctor! Trust me, it's quite hilarious!"

 _Why_ did he tell her this? He had _no_ idea. He just felt like it: definitely not the bestest of reason, he admit.

Hearing his bitter tone, her eyes grew wide, mouth agape, fingers stopping in its track. "A _doctor_ , you said? But that's a dangerous career you're persuading! People would do anything - really, _anything_ \- to have a doctor on their side!"

"Well, Lady, that's kinda the point." He replied, grinning cheekily. "I want to be _needed_ , to be useful! And helping those in need is a great place to start, don't you think?"

She frowned, hands drawn back to be clasped once again. "Uhm, well, sure, ...I guess. B-but people are _desperate_ nowadays, if they can't have the doctor to themself, they would go as far as to _kill_ them as an assurance they wouldn't go to the other side! And with the wars brewing..."

He cutted her off, amusement dancing in his eyes.

"Oh my, I don't know you _cared_ so much about me."

Will probably just have an early one way ticket to his grave, but damn it if he cared right now! The only thing he wanted now was to tease this uptight woman he just meet, the woman who have shown her caring heart to him. Honestly, he was thankful this get-to-know together have been moving this smoothly. It was a first, right?

His teasing just now, amazingly enough, have the desirable affect: _she blushed! ...While scoffing_. "Of course I cared. You're my soon-to-be Husband here, it pretty much listed that I am _needed_ to care."

Will doesn't show it, but he was truly saddened by her answer. Sigh, such a hopeless romantic he was.

He stopped any movement he was making earlier, hands resting on the piano's board. "Soon-to-be huh...? It's so _weird_. I can't believe I'm going to marry this _soon_. The very first bachelor of my village to be wed, I wonder if I should be proud of that?"

Lady Reyna begin to stare at him immensely, recognition flashed for a moment. If her future husband had blinked for a second there he couldn't have catch that.

"Hey," she called. "Do you remember my request earlier?"

 _Oh yeah_ , the young man recalled, _she did ask that, wasn't she?_

Will raised an eyebrow, nodding. "Eh, yeah, I sure do. Is there-...?"

She shut him up with a look.

The young Lady soon looked away, biting her bottom lips. "I... I wanted to ask you this earlier, but... But do you know why... Why _we_ are engaged in the first place?"

Oh Lord, her _expression_ , she looked so damn hopeful too. Will almost let himself lied, just to appease her, but he didn't.

The blond youth hoped he did the right thing.

Will shook his head. "I'm sorry, but I don't know myself. My parent is pretty adamant about keeping their lips sealed it seem."

"Oh, I see," her disappointment can't be hidden at all, a majorly unfortunate event for Will's heart, as guilt gnawing at him for something he wasn't even at fault.

Feeling pity, he tried to reassured her. "Don't worry! They'll bond to slip up something. If I did get new info, you sure be the first one to know. I promise! Cross my heart!"

 _Damn it, Will! Another promise?!_ He sighed, disgusted at himself. This will be the death of him, he swear.

Unexpectedly, oblivious to his dilemma, she laughed. "Sir Will, you sure have a good heart. _Too_ good maybe. But I'm quite lucky really, if there's anyone I'm forced to be with, I'm glad it was you."

Hearing this sudden flattery, Will furiously blushed, ducking his head as an attempt to hide his face.

(He failed miserably).

"A-ah, thank you! You flatter me so... But, _I'm_ the lucky one here Lady! I mean... Marrying such an influential beautiful young woman...? Haha, it's the _best_ thing life has ever given me! Truly! It is!"

It's funny, he thought. He remembered how much he dreaded this one idea on his carriage mere hours ago. Yet here he was, pretty much gushing of how much of a lucky man he is to be chosen as an participant in this forced marriage of theirs.

Life - _Will_ \- was truly a hypocrite sometimes.

Reyna could only shook her head in what he suspiciously thought as fondness, muttering to herself. "Oh, how much you reminded me of him, it's truly is suffocating... To remember..."

Will blinked his sky blue eyes, head cocked to the side. He was sure he heard something from her, he really _does_. "Is something the... Matter, Lady Reyna?"

The young woman stiffened.

"Oh, it's nothing," she dismissed with a wave of her hand, expression neutral. "Nothing for _you_ to be concerning yourself about, Sir."

What's with him and being threatened lately? He mused.

Will stood up, coughing onto his fist, changing the subject - for her. "So, finally made up your mind on showing me where the dinner is?"

She stared at him with something akin to confusion, but is was soon washed away, hands fiddling with her dress yet again. "Oh yes, _that_. I did... Said that, didn't I?"

The Lady swallow up the lump in her throat, seemingly at a lost to what she have to said. Will have to say, it was really cute, but Will be dammed if he ever said that.

"So yeah, _dinner_..." She coughed. "It's this way, Sir Will."

Will cheered, acting oblivious - for _her_ sake. "Heh, I got to say, I'm pretty hungry right now. Mother's cooking was great and all, but _real_ food is where it's at!"

They stepped through the spacious hallway once again, leaving the gigantic room behind.

The Lady smiled in response, almost teasingly. "Well, I hope you enjoy them while they'd last, Sir. It could be your _last_ dinner before our wedding."

Will stopped in his track.

" _Excuse me_?"

Lady Reyna stopped also, frowning her pretty face. "You _do_ know, right? About the ceremony? The ceremony of _our_ wedding? It's going to be held soon. Does 'tomorrow' ring a bell to you?"

Will jaw was dropped.

"T-t- _tomorrow_?!"

Not noticing her male companion increasing stress, she nodded. "Yes, we are going to exchange vow tomorrow on the altar of the sacred church. You know, the burned church of Ang-..."

Whatever she was going to say, it can't be heard anymore. Will just wanted to _fuke_.

"Oh _my_! Sir Will, are you al-...?!"

He fainted.

* * *

 **A/N: Welp, the good news is, I'm not in jail guys! Give this Wombat a round of applause! But the bad news was, it's freaking _late_ in here.**

 **Lord, I need my goddamn sleep *sips coffee* .**

 **Anyway, according to my calculation - that wasn't completely _bonkers_ by the way - this chapter was 10% random silliness, 45% exposition, and another 45% moment with Reyna.**

 **Huh, that's actually pretty balanced... That's _weird._**

 **Tch, forget about that! Guys! Next chapter! We finally will get a glimpse of Mr. You-Know-Who!**

 **Yes people of Fanfiction dot Net, we're gonna meet Lord Voldemort himself! Isn't that _sweet_?!**

 **O-okay, I lied, it's not really _that_ You-Know-Who because if so, this fanfic would be in the Crossover category, but still-...! Oh, you get my point.**

 **Thank you so much for your kind review last chapter! Can't believe whining actually work... Haha, keep it coming people! Those fav and follow too!**

 **Ah, well, it seem that's it from me today guys, hope you enjoyed this one as much as I enjoyed writing it for you guys!**

 **Oh, almost forgot! Do not own the Percy Jackson series! If I did, Percy and Harry would be twin or something... Pretty much every crossover fics with these two dorks will be canon to say the least.**

 **With that said... Adiós!**


	4. A Vow to Remember

**3: A Vow to Remember**

* * *

"I'm sorry for lying."

After out of nowherely uttering this, the woman look down, very much guilty of her reckless desicion and he was having none of it. Even if his eyes betrayed what his feeling truly were.

"N-no! It's okay! You're just having-..." He paused, in search for the right word.

Taking his silent, she filled in. "An urge of unacceptable behaviour?"

"-No, _fun_." He corrected, "and I'm overreacted, like always. Really, all is fine. Peachy even!"

She scoffed, ever so persistent. "Really, Will? Your fever say otherwise. And goodness! Try to stay still will you. _Please_."

The woman reaches for him, and as quickly as he could - more so from reflex than anything else - his dominant hand bolted itself to latch itself onto her's, catching it in midair. The rose scented handkerchief she held was left afloat between them.

"No, Reyna," the young man spoke softly, almost shy. Will could feel strains of blond hair shooking along with the move of his head, the grip he had on her hand loosened, more gentle, fueled by uncertainty. "Honestly Lady, you worry too much. Everything _are_ peachy."

Her brows were knitted together, light pink dusted her cheeks, almost invisible under the admittedly dark environment Reyna had call her bedroom.

Will definitely felt lucky - and giddy - as he catch this rare display of expression.

He smirked.

"Y-you..." Coming to a dead end, she choose to throw her handkerchief at his face instead, hiding her own with his lack of vision - contributed by the cloth that have now shielded his eyes.

"Just go to sleep Will," she demanded, albeit weak. "Go to sleep."

 _What's this? Defeated already?_ He smiled under the piece of cloth, amused. The aroma of roses tickling his senses.

Half of Will wondered since when did they were bold enough to go on with the first name basis already. But then again, they did been throwing around obvious flirty banter for the past thirty minutes. With this type of record, they're bound to past _some_ sort of boundaries, right? At least, that's what the young man hoped it to be.

As much as he hated to admit it, his father seem to be correct as of now - with him just enjoying the Lady's company, his chosen wife mind you. Maybe being engaged wasn't so bad after all.

Will bitten the inside of his cheeks, concerned and recalling the exact emotions he's been experiencing lately. Was it... bitter? Sorrow? Acceptance? If it was acceptance, does this mean he was coming to term with his chosen faith? Of tying down to this woman he barely even know? Of wobbly walking a life together on a thin red string?

It felt weird, for once, not denying anything. And it felt... _right_. Familiar even. Right where home should be.

The blond youth smiled, happy with this conclusion. He then adjust his body to a position most comfortable to Reyna's notably cotton filled sofa. Will next move was to wipe the not-too-offending purple handkerchief off his face, breathing in the lingering smells of the Lady's perfume. He cheekily grinned at the owner of it, his head that's been throbbing from falling onto the marble floor not too long ago ignored.

Thinking what he's going to do next, trying to be thorough, the young man coughed onto his fist - immediately gaining the Heiress attention. She's then patiently waited for him to continue, nodding as if reassuring. But he'd get the impression it was mean for her specifically than him.

Suddenly, Will felt as though he was caught on the spot. A reindeer that has seen the hunter. He really don't know how to begin-...

—He awkwardly tore his eyes away, embarrassed to meet her's and scratched the back of his neck - an old habit inherited from his father. "I... I just want to say thank you."

"For what?" Reyna countered, snappy and in obvious bad mood. A frown adjourning her lips. "I've done nothing of sort for you to be grateful for, Sir Will. I only lie, a very childish action too I may add."

Will had the sudden urge to roll his eyes at her demeanour. Their conversation will always loop to this, weren't they? He tried again, wording it clearly: "Reyna, _please_. Carrying me to your room and taking care of me is enough of an apology already, really. Believe me when I say this, Lady."

The raven haired woman seemed unconvinced, unconsciously tugging at her braid - that he noticed she'd done a lot. "But-..."

He don't know where the bubbling courage came from nor for the reason on why he done it; but he bravely cupped her cheeks anyway - a _Nobel's_ cheeks! - and it successfully cutted her off.

"Lady," he sternly look square into her eyes, "no buts."

Yet again, she blushed.

As if sensing the tension in the air, the woods on Reyna's fancy fireplace cackled with heat: fire buzzing around them as ashes scattered within the bricks structure, illuminating the room to where the moonlight can't reach and providing warm in this ungodly chilly night.

Will had to admit, the midnight breeze is quite refreshing even if it was a bringer of cold and a promised kiss of death. Or was this time of day should be classified as morning by now? Eh, who care about the details, really?

—The most important thing right now is that he's glad Reyna didn't close the balcony door - its splotchless white curtains flowing, in her haste of taking care of him. The wind did help big time with his massive headache, and beside, who can't say no to the magnificent moon-view it provide?

Reyna'd seem eager to object to that.

The worried-stricken Lady herself was sitting on a mahogany chair, scooting closer to him with a bowl of hot water rested on her laps - a presumably companion to her handkerchief. A round wooden table standing on three legs for tea party of sort was laying not too far away from them, closely located to the sofa. Trinket of sweets, kettle, and tea cup for one on top of it only lessen his doubt.

(Will hold down a chuckle. Who know the harden young woman was the type to hold down a tea party for herself?).

Feeling his body cramping up from the lack of movement, Will's feet latched themself onto the marble floor carpeted surface - the Lady's outstretched hands politely denied. Other than the soft fur beneath him, he also noticed his polished shoes have been thrown away near the double doors by his fiancée, seeing only his mismatched socks was present and around to greet him.

(Will recalled the word he had used to describe Reyna: _Fiancée_. Oh boy, why does his heart always go pitter patter just by thinking about it? It do fell off addressing anyone with such title. But it's the truth, so it's alright, ...Right?).

In a attempt to frizzle his frantic thoughts, he look on elsewhere, down to his feet. And that, probably wasn't the brightest idea on his part though as he quickly realized the carpet he's been lamenting on about was actually a raggedy skin of a Grizzly Bear: it jaw open and sharp canine showing.

Will paled.

His fiancée quickly noticed his expression on her taste for carpet. She hold her gaze on it, almost boredly.

"That's a birthday gift from my Father," Reyna begin and as quickly end her explanation. She was then greeted by his stare that truly begs to differ. "Oh _trust me_ , I wanted to throw this rubbish _ages_ ago, but he always catches me red handed. Somehow."

The young man nodded with bitten bottom lips, understanding the woman frustration all too well. He remembered his own tales with his father, how Apollo seem to always be present in all of his little mishaps and kinks. How he done it, Will would never figure it out. Daddy instinct perhaps?

All of a sudden, Reyna made a move to stand from her seat, making Will released his hold on her and his thoughts. He saw her placing down the use-to-be steaming bowl of water in her hands to the table, eyes leaving his for once. Even then, she still caught his puzzled stare.

She looked away.

"I don't care what you have to say, Sir, but it's time for you-for _us_ to hit the hay."

As if planned, the bells toll three times; ringing itself all around the circular room, surprising Will out of his skin.

Three chime... that mean three o'clock in the morning, right? Sheesh, whoever keeping up with the track of time, they need to be fired for doing such a great job, like, right now. No one deserve to be that good in work - O-or at anything, of course! It's too unfair! A clear disadvantage for competitors! Foul play!

(Why'd he blabber about such trivial, illogical, unrelated thing in his brain, he had no idea-...

—Thankfully, there's always Reyna to straighten up his back).

"You can sleep on the sofa if you want," was all she said as she made her way to her bed; a glorious comfy thing big enough for two, all around puffy purple sheet covering it. The bed's spring squeaked with the added weight of Reyna as she plopped herself there, making a move to take off her braid.

But the sofa wasn't what Will concerned himself about. Never does.

 _Big enough for two_ , he thought.

"Yeah, I'll take the sofa. Thank you."

 _If only_.

She took off her stiff-looking heels, placing it on top of the bed headboard, making small talk as she go:

"Was the sofa... cozy enough for you, Will?" She asked. Even if her back was facing him, he could still detected trace of guilt - and maybe longing? - in her tone of voice.

"Oh yeah," Will nodded, "it's cozy alright. Very soft too."

He's not lying, the sofa in question was cozy. Overly so he would argued. It just that... the bed in front of him, where the Lady reside with her neat braid loosened and her hair tucked into her night gown - did she changed when he's out cold? - was more... inviting in this chilly night to say the least. Maybe if he asked her nicely, she would-...

A groan escaped his lips.

 _Damn it, Will!_ His brain screamed, _The both of you aren't married yet! Get a grip on yourself...!_

 _Yet_ , being the keyword.

Groan intensify.

Lord, was it wrong for wanting to smash his head to the nearest, most solid, most pain inducing brick structure in this creaky old' town? Because he awfully wanted to do so, like, this exact second. Please, don't ask where the masochism came from. Just don't.

"Ahem, Will?" His wif-Reyna, called.

The young man looked up, meeting her gaze once again. "Yes?"

Reyna averted her eyes, slim frame comfortably hugged by an enormous blanket - another silk perhaps? Upon further inspection, she was chewing... _something_ quite vigorously. He just hoped it wasn't the inside of her mouth that have to be the victim.

Thankfully, the use of voice indicate that she didn't do harm to any of her vocal chords. But it did pull him out of his thought right on time. Reyna spoke to him with enough foreboding that he did took her seriously (not that he would ever think of doing otherwise in the first place).

"So, Will... I... I'm _sorry_. For forcing you to marry me, for lying about the ceremony, for... _everything_. I know it's hard, and rough, and probably traumatizing for you, and I don't want to be the bearer of bad news, I really don't but-...!"

Now Will was worried, seeing her all flustered and nervous. Never once did he get the vibe of easily having a mental breakdown from her. It's _his_ quirk. And here he thought _she's_ the one that going to bear with him. "Whoa, slow down! Lady, what are you _on_ about?"

Reyna breath in some airs, tugging at her hairs yet again.

"Did Luke show you our underground chapel?" The Lady begin and Will nodded - confirming that yes; the monstrous butler did let him snoop around down the stair. Even if he did get an earful from his mother after that.

He urged her to continue.

She chuckled humourlessly, eyes apologetic. "That's good, I guess. Because tomorrow at noon, Mother want us to recite our vows. At that very chapel."

Will gaped, drinking it in. "Seriously-...?!"

"It's only a practice run!" She quickly interrupted him, adding a few words of comfort as she saw him ready to have a heart attack. "There's no reason to panic! Really. Beside, I think you're going to be _great_ at it."

He'd doubt it.

* * *

"Repeat after me: 'With this _candle_ , I will light your way in the dark. With this _ring_ , I ask you to be _mine_.' It is _very_ simple, lad. Come now, focus...!" Was what the wheelchair bound Priest said to the blond youth in his exasperation, massaging the bridge of his noise showing how his patience had tinned beyond belief.

Will gulped, subtle threat taken. "Y-yes, Priest Chiron."

The unlit candle clutched in his hand was practically shaking in his nervousness. He felt foolish. They already wasted an hour on him and he still can't get it right - his _vow_. Couldn't get _anything_ right. Even when Reyna skilfully mouthed word per word to help him through, he can't seem to get the grip on it. Nor the right sentence.

He gripped the candle holder none-too-gently, knuckle white and very much shaking. _Lord, help me_.

Witnessing his shaken form and guessing her soon-to-be husband line of thought, Reyna silently gripped his arm tightly onto her's, ceasing his nervous break down.

"It's fine," she mouthed, voiceless. "Take your time."

Take his time? Will wasn't so sure about that. If their parents quiet whisper was any indication.

The blond youth catch their fleeting stare onto one another, to him in particular actually. His parent was sited beside each other on the right row right on the front. The same goes to Reyna's parent also, but on the left side. Lord Ares snarl was swatted by Will's mother ignorance. Or, lack of it there of, as he witness his mother - Diana, fought back with a snarl of her own, still clutching that God forsaken plant. Apollo, his father, was giving him a thumbs up whenever he look back. And Lady Bellona was just plain unreadable.

He sighed, Will wanted to run. And sneeze too. This 'chapel' was full of dust and his noise didn't like it _one bit_. The room itself was dark, the only source of light was the ventilations, and barren too seeing as only a wide table for the practice vow and a few rows of chairs in it. Only a lit candle was present on top of the table itself. There's also a flower vases in every corner of the room - full of lilies. But the poor thing was already wilted, showing the care it gotten. Their brown petals falling to the wooden cricking floor below, dead.

"...-ad...! Listen... T-... me! Are you _listening_ , lad?!"

The Priest unexpectedly whacked his staff onto the young man's head. Shattering his day dream for the umpteenth times.

The rob wearing old man stomped his staff to the ground. He grumbled, voice hoarse and positively fuming with anger. "Do you want to be married off or not, lad?!"

The blond youth couldn't take it anymore, he cracked beneath the weight.

—"No!" He shouted.

This declaration brought unwanted, negative, reaction out of everyone. Heck, even himself.

His fiancée, could only hold back a gasp as betrayal seep through. "Wha-...Y-you don't want to marry me?"

"Oh, no!" Realizing what he'd just done, the young man flailed his arms in a frenzy, making an exceptional job on explaining himself. "I wanted to! I wanted it very mu-...!"

His only respond was a whack on the head.

"Lad, calm down!" The Priest boomed, the culprit of his skull suffering. "Do you even has the ring?"

Will wondered what the uses of the staff is if the man already had a wheelchair to walk on as he rub his sore head as gently as he could. He didn't dare to ask though, only nodded to the man.

"Of course I has it! Here," his hand slipped into his vest, entering one of its the many pocket and taking out the simple silver band ring; on it craved Reyna's name and his in its full entirety - he absentmindedly wondered how it all fit onto the little thing. When he's done, he showed it to the Priest proudly. A tad _too_ proudly.

"Good," for the first time ever in these past hours, Chiron smiled. "Now, begin your sacred vow! Cor-rect-ly."

Again, the subtle threat was taken with a passive nod.

Will took Reyna's hand slowly with his own, unsure as his eyes meet with her glossy manics. Unexpectedly, she squeeze their linked hands, putting a brave smile as her eyes seem to twinkle with... Happiness?

He was awestruck, he never seen the Lady like this before. True that he's just met her for... a day or so? But it was still jarring. Nevertheless, amidst all of his confusion and worry, he returned it full force.

Out on the corner of his eyes, Will saw his parent. They seem to be delighted thankfully: Apollo with his various thumbs up and Diana's gaze finally leaving Ares and directed solely on him, they shined as if she was proud.

His lips quirked upward, he felt like crying. _Thank you for the boost Father, Mother_. God, he felt pathetic. It wasn't even the real wedding and still his eyes uncomfortably sting with unshed tears.

And there he was - with runny nose and damp cheeks, gingerly holding the hand of the woman that might be from his dream (?) in an underground dusty old poor excuse of an wedding altar. Yeah, now he know how much people lie when they said that the first was always the best.

He was counting on the second to be the best day of his life, sure. But today? This... this so called _first_ of his? It's the _worse_ that could happen to a man.

His story begin the very second he lit up that goddamn candle.

Like what he was doing right now.

"Reyna Avilla-Ramírez Arellano," he begin.

She look up, attention solely on him as hope danced in her eyes.

Will did find this odd - why that particular expression? Why express so much joy to these fakes? They're not doing the real thing, so what's the fuss? Was he overthingking things, like usual? Mother never does approve of imagination, so why does he use them now? Oh yes, because he was on the verge of insanity! _Lord_ , shaking, hyperventilating, spots of white everywhere...!

Regardless of his... complication on breathing, Will shook his head and exhale - reciting the lines he's been so keen on not screwing up.

Well, here goes nothing.

* * *

 **A/N: So here it is! Half of a chapter for you guys! If it seem rushed, it's because it was. I'm not even gonna try on lying out of this one.**

 **This chapter that you read here is my _third_ attempt at writing it. The first one I accidentally deleted, and the second was garbage. Utter freaking _garbage_. It took me weeks to realize that it wasn't working even with so many amount of fixing I done, so I decided to just be done with it and deleted it also, starting anew.**

 **—If you can't sense it by now, I'm still pretty pissed about it. So, as to not make you guys wait any longer, I decide to split this chapter into two. With this uploaded I have more times to finish off the other half with a nice red ribbon wrapped on top of it just for you!**

 **Just don't expect on an update like tomorrow, or even next week 'cause like exam is brewing on the horizon and I'd need to focus on that. So sorry, but don't worry, it'll be a fast update! ...I hope.**

 **Oh yeah, and another apology for promising 'Voldemort' to be in this in the last chapter. I swear I'd have him making an appearance in my first draft but it already dissolve into nothingness before I can show it you guys.**

 **(And people, this is _exactly_ why you should have a backup save file somewhere).**

 **Sigh, I'm very sorry.**

 **Disclaimer: I do not own the Percy Jackson series, it was owned by the most prestigious Mr. Rick Riordan. Even if I did own it, all the books chapters probably gone 'poof'! Only my own recklessness can be left to blame. So the series wouldn't even exist.**

 **Siiiiiiiighhhhhh.**

 **Ahh, and one more thing! Thank you to Ayano's Theory of Relativity for the kind review! And yes, piano is like the number one way to sneak into a girl's heart. At least, that's what Hollywood taught me. And you gotta believe in good old' Holly!**

 **So guys, review, follow, and fav - those three help me to keep on going and ride on with the writer train! So please, if you have the times, do leave some for me. I'll be super grateful, I promise!**

 **Ciao, guys!**


	5. A Penny for the Dead's Thought

**BC1: A Penny for the Dead's Thought**

* * *

Laughter. Scar. Fire. Melody.

Familiar tune have lulled him to sleep and have now re-awaken him, the very reason that make him cling—shamedly yearning, for the upper realm. His unbeating heart soar, untangling his body as he sluggishly thrust open the vault between him and the darkness, welcoming this bright new life.

The Corpse, who had the appearance of a young dismantled boy, had woken up in a wooden coffin with this melody in mind. The picture of his dearly beloved perfectly captured in his hazy rat-eaten brain. His lips moved, practicing a smile and a tooth fall out.

Not realizing the lost of tooth, he opened his eyelids, and blinked.

Black canopy quickly greeted his vision as soon as he adjusted his eyes to the dim moonlight, but oddly, only one was working. He shakily raise a finger, tracing the line where his eye should be, but he could only found an empty socket in its place.

The boy wasn't so sure on what to make of this. He lost an eye and he didn't know how, coming to a frightening blank. He try to summon his memory by sheer of wills. Like he predicted, it doesn't work. He should have felt terrified, maybe panicked even. But no, he was oddly thrilled and he learn to understand why. This was an uncharted land, a new territory, a brand new start and he was happy as long as he was with his beloved—giddy to all the possibility in his soon-to-be married life.

It was as if his emotion defaulted itself to a hopeful state out of spite.

The Corpse sited his body upright, examining his own flesh. He poked it and played with them out of morbid curiosity.

They were stitched. All of them. His legs, his arms, his nose. Stitched sloppily with long metal strings as if his body was a doll with the sole reason to be experimented on. His skin was the colour of sickly grey, splotches of rash burn decorated it. His hair was a mess, sticking out everywhere like a road sign and really greasy too, the tip of his hair told the foresign of its burned state. He shook his head and choose on not to ponder about it, picking his his fallen veil, putting it back on and patting his dirty white tuxedo from stubborn dirt. This action quite literally caused his eye to leak black liquid like blood.

It fall into his mouth and he tasted it.

He tasted nothing.

All of this should have raise a red flag to the average person, but this boy definitely aren't average. Nor normal, and neither was he a person.

After he was satisfied on checking himself and his oddity, the boy waited, waited for his beloved to come for him in the depth of this forest. In where he was it was dark, the soil damp with rain water and cracked tomb stones littlered the ground. Everything was so unkept it truly was a sight to behol—holes was everywhere, animal's body left to rot, bonny hand reaches out to the sky and went limp, and dead crisp leafs scattered hiding the place from civilization.

But alas, he took no mind to his finding.

He looked to the night sky and wondered, wasn't he suppose to be on the church by now? It's already midnight—the time that the both of them promised to exchange vows. Maybe all of their guests was waiting for him there. And maybe _he_ was too, dashingly draped in his very own tuxedo with a ring and a wine glass in his hand, grinning that infuriating grin of his.

And it hit him.

This was his second chance, he realized, a second chance to rewind and redo it all.

The Corpse smiled - a proper one this time - and stood from his grave.

 _Wait a little longer Percy. I'm coming._

* * *

 **A/N: So, guys, if you're wondering what 'BC' is and what it was all about, it stand for 'Bonus Chapter': a chapter that happen side-by-side with the main story but not necessarily necessary. Why wrote a bonus chapter so freaking early you ask? Easy, 'cause I _fucking_ lost my _fucking_ chapter to my junk of a laptop. _Again_.**

 **I already write 4k worth of words, and it goes POOF! Gone. Evaporating into worthless digital air. Hell, I don't even know what exactly happened, I just go to save the file and it suddenly gone corrupted, an error message pop out and my laptop suddenly reset itself. I'll admit, it almost gives me a heart attack. But fortunate or not, only the chapter I've been working on was gone.**

 **Sigh, I'm sorry guys for that excessive totally uncool cussing session. I'm so mad right now I figured I'd need to blow some steam out of my system. So I write.**

 **The only drive for this chapter to be made is to inform you guys of my... _unexpected_ misfortune. Because Fanfiction forbid chapter with only an Author Note in its core element, I decided to write some side-stories to accompany it. **

**And 'cause Will is too goddamn bright for my foul mood, I thought it'll do me some good to write on another character POV. And this was the result (quite ironic too, because what I wrote is pretty damn hopeful for my really pissed mind). And I'm kinda proud of it actually.**

 **Anyway, I want to say my thanks to Ayano's Theory of Relativity, FaiKazahaya, and Q-A the Authoress for their reviews. Thanks to these three I could go back on track and ready myself on re-writing the lost chapter. Wish me luck guys! And oh, another review, follow, and fav would be nice too.**

 **PS, I'd made a new Percabeth story where Percy is a sword. Do my sentence of a summary tickle your fancy? Then be my guest and check it out! Just click on my profile page and you're there! (Cough, shameless cross-promotion is shameless, cough).**

 **Ahem, so that's it from me guys. This Author Note already gone long enough. See you in the real chapter!**


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